Malcolm Turnbull has defended the Prime Minister's claim that living in remote Indigenous communities is a "lifestyle choice", saying the comments should not be turned into a "let's-give-Tony-Abbott-a-belting occasion".

Mr Turnbull led a ministerial defence of the Prime Minister, who has faced widespread criticism on Wednesday for the "lifestyle choice" observation when querying how much government support should be provided to small outback communities.

Indigenous leaders have condemned Mr Abbott's comments as "wrong", saying they overlook the cultural connection of community members to the land and say they set back the Prime Minister's genuine commitment to the First Australians. Prominent Aboriginal lawyer and activist Noel Person has delivered the most scathing rebuke telling ABC Radio that Mr Abbott's comments are "hopeless," "disappointing," and "disrespectful".

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"I'm just bitterly disappointed to hear this deranged debate go into the substandard manner in which it's being conducted," he told The World Today.

The Greens and Labor are demanding Mr Abbott apologise for what they say is an insensitive and racist remark

"Tony Abbott is a Prime Minister stuck in the 1950s, he says he's the prime minister for indigenous Australians but he just wants to move them off their land," Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said.

"What is it that Tony Abbott doesn't get about the well-documented connection that Australia's first citizens have between them and the land?" Mr Shorten said.

The Federal Parliament's first female Indigenous MP, Nova Peris, said Mr Abbott had exposed himself as a "pretender" and "insincere" on Indigenous affairs.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott with school attendance officers in Yirrkala during his visit to North East Arnhem Land in 2014.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

"Tony Abbott's true colours about Aboriginal people are becoming more evident every day. He is effectively saying Aboriginal people's personal and spiritual beliefs and the decisions they make don't matter," the Labor senator said.

"In the Territory, Aboriginal people call him 'The Gammon Man,'" she said. In the Northern Territory the term "gammon" means something that is false or not serious.

But the Prime Minister says he is "very confortable with his credentials" in the area of Indigenous policy.

"All Australians are free to live where we choose but inevitably there are some limits to what we can reasonably expect of the taxpayer to support these choices," he said.

"I don't think there are too many Australian prime ministers who took the national government for almost a week to a remote Aboriginal community. I did it last year, it is my intention to do it again this year," he told reporters in Mt Gambier.

'A valid point'

Cabinet ministers Christopher Pyne and Joe Hockey are also urging critics to lay off the Prime Minister, saying he was making a valid point about Indigenous poverty.

Asked whether people living in remote communities have made a "lifestyle choice", Mr Turnbull did not directly answer the question but said people had "unreasonably" "dumped on Tony Abbott" for his comments.

"The suggestion that Tony Abbott is somehow or other insensitive to the situation of Indigenous communities. I don't think there is any non-Indigenous member of the Parliament that has more involvement with, or more understanding of, Indigenous communities than Tony," Mr Turnbull told Brisbane Radio 4BC.

"The only point … we should be focused on is just the recognition that obviously in smaller more remote communities there are less opportunities," he said.

"There is a fair issue there to be discussed but regrettably, people always want to turn it into a flaming match," Mr Turnbull said.

"It's important to put that issue on the table, talk about it rationally without turning it into a let's-give-Tony-Abbott-a-belting occasion, as often people like to do."

Mr Turnbull is widely seen as a leadership rival. He said he would not rule out ever running for the leadership because such a promise would not be true.

"What do you want me to say? I have decided that under no circumstances would I ever be a candidate for the leadership of the Liberal Party? Is that what you want me to say?" he asked host Patrick Condren.

"If that's what you want to say?" replied Condren.

"But it's not true," Mr Turnbull replied.

"Any member of the party room has the potential to lead the party and in the right circumstances would or could be a candidate for the leadership," he said.

But Mr Turnbull said speculation at this point would be unhelpful and said his focus was on supporting Mr Abbott as Prime Minister.

'Not insensitive or inaccurate'

Speaking on ABC Radio in Sydney, the Treasurer also defended Mr Abbott and said the "abject poverty" in Indigenous communities is "horrendous," and "gut wrenching".